Czechs Say Billionaire Leader Must Resign in Mass Protests

**wvwvw** · 11-17-2019, 03:59 AM

Czechs Say Billionaire Leader Must Resign in Mass Protests
By Peter Laca
November 16, 2019, 8:47 AM EST

• Demonstrators accuse Premier Babis of conflict of interest
• Babis has repeatedly vowed not to quit despite demonstrations

Protesters attend an Anti-Government protest at the Letna plain on Nov. 16.

Hundreds of thousands of Czechs thronged the streets of Prague in one of the largest anti-government protests in the country since the fall of communism, calling on their billionaire prime minister to step down.

The European Union member’s demonstrations came on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution and are part of a global wave of discontent triggered by corruption and abuses of human rights and the rule of law.

But unlike the unrest that has turned lethal and shot down rulers from Lebanon to Bolivia, the Czech protest is unlikely to loosen Premier Andrej Babis’s grip on power. Instead it will most likely resemble the vocal yet inconsequential actions by opposition parties in regional peers Poland and Hungary, where ruling populists have held on to power despite accusations of democratic backsliding.

Waving banners saying “Rule of law” and “We won’t give up freedom,” protesters from across the country poured into a plain in the shadow of Prague Castle, the site of anti-communist rallies that toppled the Soviet-backed dictatorship. The police estimated the crowd at about 200,000 people, a smaller number than the 280,000 protesters who attended the previous rally in June, which was the biggest demonstration since 1989.

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Organizers accuse Babis of a conflict of interest because he influences policies that affect the agriculture, media and chemicals empire that he founded. They pledged to continue with demonstrations until he steps down or sells the business, which he placed in trusts before becoming the premier.

“We aren’t protesting against the result of the election, we are protesting against the abuse of power by those who won the election,” Benjamin Roll, one of the organizers, told the crowd.

Babis has repeatedly rejected the allegations, even as the EU’s executive arm probes whether he’s maintained ties to the conglomerate while helping to decide on the bloc’s budget.

The billionaire is the most popular leader by far in the country of 10.6 million, having waged an eight-year campaign at the head of an anti-establishment movement to wrest power from traditional parties that he accuses of corruption and incompetence.

His message has resonated with voters, helped by policies to increase spending on pensioners and state employees, plans to build more highways and a staunch anti-migrant stance. The backing for his ANO party rose to 34% last month, more than twice as high as the nearest competitor, after the prosecutor decided against charging him for allegations that he misused EU funds.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-protests-rage

**The Lawspeaker** · 11-17-2019, 04:12 AM

Aha.. I see that Soros has invested in another rent-a-mob..

**Red Pill** · 11-17-2019, 07:03 PM

Originally Posted by The Lawspeaker

Aha.. I see that Soros has invested in another rent-a-mob..

Looks like you are right: 'The billionaire is the most popular leader by far... His message has resonated with voters, helped by policies to increase spending on pensioners and state employees, plans to build more highways and a staunch anti-migrant stance. The backing for his ANO party rose to 34% last month, more than twice as high as the nearest competitor, after the prosecutor decided against charging him for allegations that he misused EU funds.'

I wonder who are the protesters, but I guess you can always find a number of disaffected people.

**Aldaris** · 11-19-2019, 05:02 PM

What that guy did was partitioning his company to soak up dotations, which wouldn't be avilable for him otherwise. Apparently, if you get all the technical details right, you can do it legally, but it's an opportunistic, dick move on someone else's expense in most cases nevertheless. The official owner of a splinter company in question was his son, about whom he later claimed is mentally disabled. Yeah, beyond clear Babiš went through a lot of law gymnastics to get his way done, but his lawyers eventually won the paper war. Nice going. Well, that said, an angry mob can do shit. Babiš is a democratically elected prime minister and if he won't decide to resign himself, nobody except for Zeman can make him to. And he made it very clear that that's not happening.

**TheMaestro** · 11-19-2019, 05:07 PM

Babis is not representing us good in Czechia it seems.

**Aldaris** · 11-19-2019, 05:16 PM

Originally Posted by TheMaestro

Babis is not representing us good in Czechia it seems.

Yeah well, I'd say. I wouldn't necessarily put him in prison, as a certain degree of semi-legal machinations are a bread and butter of any other businessman on high enough level, but if you're a politician aswell, those should be out of question. I wouldn't join that mob, but I'm definitely against him.

**Aldaris** · 11-19-2019, 05:24 PM

I hate that ANO scum anyway, they've dragged my father to this aswell and he faced almost twenty years in jail at one time, he fortunately managed to get away. They're corrupt and populistic like hell.